There are renewed calls for greater training of police in Aboriginal towns after a court found officers used unlawful force during the arrest of an elderly Indigenous man last year.
Video showing the forceful arrest of Peter O'Keefe in Doomadgee in Queensland's gulf country was shared online in November, sparking outrage in the community and led to protests over the case.
Mr O'Keefe, 65, suffered injuries as a result of the arrest.
He was charged with obstructing and assaulting police, however the Doomadgee Magistrates Court dismissed the charges last Thursday.
Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Legal Service solicitor Scott Sier described the lead-up to his client's arrest.
"It was a hot Doomadgee day at 11:00am and the road would have been much hotter than 40 degrees," Mr Sier said.
"Mr O'Keefe said loudly and clearly, 'I'm going to get my thongs'. That resulted in an immediate push by the male constable."
Magistrate Ross Mack ruled that Mr O'Keefe had been subjected to unlawful use of force under section 615 of the Police Powers Act.
"That initial push cascaded into grabbing Mr O'Keefe's arms, twisting them behind his back," Mr Sier said.
"It was evident to everybody in the courtroom that the video wasn't flattering.
Police training 'imperative'
The case has prompted calls by Mr Sier and local Doomadgee leaders for rural police working in Indigenous communities to undergo more extensive training.
"This case is a reminder that the differences between the big cities and rural areas are profound," Mr Sier said.
Mr Sier said officers underwent cultural training on a macro level that negated the specific requirements of individual Aboriginal communities.
"They're [police] not given training that can assist them with the particular Indigenous community they're going into."
'Sit down with us'
Gulf country leader and Indigenous man Murrandoo Yanner said local leaders had been trying to sit down with police for more than 20 years.
He said police needed to stop sending inexperienced officers to places like Doomadgee.
"This was something that could have been avoided had they participated in cultural awareness upon arriving in the community," Mr Yanner said.
"This has been spoken about and requested of the police for the past two decades, so we're hoping this loss for them in court will liven them up to sit down with us."
A Queensland Police spokesperson said it had a range of online learning initiatives designed to "build organisational cultural capability".
"The QPS First Nations and Multicultural Affairs Unit [FNMAU] established in November 2020 prioritises increasing cultural capability and supports and drives cultural inclusion across the organisation," the spokesperson said.
